Automobile door



J. LEDWINKA AUTOMOBILE DOOR Filed June 8, 1921 v INVENTOR. .706EPHLiam/WM TORNE Y.

Patented Aug. 31, 1926.

UNITED STATES P AT E JOSEPH LEDWINKA, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,ASSIGNOR TO EDWARD G.

T 0 F FTC E BUIDD MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,A COR- PORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

AUTOMOBILE DOOR.

Application filed June 8, 1921. Serial No. 475,928.

This invention relates to improvements in automobile doors. Theinvention relates more particularly to improvements in the constructionof automobile doors to provide means for supporting and carrying acurtain rod for the storm curtains.

It has become quite common practice for automobile manufacturers toequip their automobiles with storm curtains and, in many cases, thesestorm curtains are so arranged that the doors can be opened and parts ofthe storm curtains swung back without removing or unfastening thecurtain. This is usually accomplished by providing curtain rods, carriedby the doors near their tree edges and extending vertically upwardtoward the top of the automobile, to which rods parts of the stormcurtains are connected. Heretofore, it has been the practice to providean opening in the top rail of the door and to mount a socket within thedoor in line with the opening so that the curtain rods could be insertedthrough the opening and seated in the socket. This practice has provenobjectionable because, when the storm curtains are not in use, and, insome cases, even when they are in use, water may penetrate through thisopening and socket to the inside of the door Where it would rust thelatch mechanism and damage articles carried in the pockets which areusually formed in the doors.

One of the main objects of my invention is to provide an automobile doorconstruction of such a nature that a curtain rod may be carried by thedoor and inserted through the side thereof while the top rail of thedoor is free from any opening. Another object of my invention is toprovide an automobile door construction in which the socket member forthe curtain rod is carried by' the latch mechanism or support so thatall ofthese parts can be assembled at a single operation and will alwaysbe accurately positioned in the door. Another object of my invention isto provide a door construction for automobiles, provided with means forcarrying a curtain rod which are simple and effective in operation andinexpensive to manufacture.

Further objects, and objects relating to economics of material anddetails of construction, will definitely appear from the detaileddescription to follow. I may accomplish the objects of my invention, inone instance. by the devices and means described in the followingspecification. tion is clearly defined and pointed out in the appendedclaims. A structure, constituting one of the preferred embodiments of myin vention, is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, forming a partof this specification, in which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary view showing in side elevation the upper cornerof an automobile door embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical, sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1,showing a curtain rod inserted in the socket.

Fig. 3 is a view of the latch plate in side elevation, showing the latchmechanism and socket member carried thereby, and

Fig. l is a transverse, sectional view through the socket member takenon the line l4: of Figs. 1 and 2.

In the drawings. similar reference numerals refer to similar partsthroughout the several views and the sectional views are taken lookingin the direction of the arrows at the ends of the sectional lines.

I accomplish the objects of my invention, in general, by providing asocket member which is carried within the door and opens through theside of the door. This socket member may well be inclined to the planeof the door and the lower end of the curtain rod may be bent obliquelyto the main portion thereof so as-to be inserted in the inclined socketmember through the side of the door. I find it desirable to make thesocket member and thelower end ofthe curtain rod of complementary,non-circular, cross-section, so that there will be no twisting of thecurtain rod in its socket. I have found it particularly desirable tomount this socket member upon the plate which carries the latchmechanism for the door, in such a manner that, when the latch plate ismounted in position within the door, the socket member is so disposedthat its mouth is in line with an opening in the side ofthe door so thatthe lower end 01"" the curtain rod may be inserted through this openinginto the socket member. This makes a very practical and efficientconstruction inasmuch as the socket member may be made of stampings andassembled on the latch plate and My invenbrought into position byassembling the latch plate in its usual position in the door.

I have illustrated, in the drawings, an allmetal automobile door formedof the two panels, 10 and 11, the central portions of which are spacedapart to form a chamber therebetween, while the edge portions of thepanel, 11, are clamped over the edges of the panel, 10, forming theflange, 12, around the bottom and vertical sides of the door. Although Ihave illustrated my invention in connection with an all-metal door c011-struction, I wish it to be understood that the invention is not limitedto use in that connection. In this all-metal door construction, theupper edge of the panel, 11, isoften beaded, as at 14:, and turned overto form the flange, 15, to which the top rail, 16, is fastened bywelding or in some other suitable manner. The panel, 10, may also beprovided with an inturned flange, 77, fastened to the top rail, 16.These features relate to all-metal door construction and do not haveanything to do with my'invention.

Attached to the inside of the panel, 10, is the reinforcing plate, 18,to which the latch plate, 19, is detachably secured. This latch plate,19, has a laterally extending flange, 20, through which the latch bolt,22, extends, the latter being slidably mounted in a bolt housing, 21,fastened to the latch plate. The tail, 23, of the latch is engaged bythe lever, 24, pivoted on the latch plate and provided with a handle,25, by which it may be operated. The socket member for the curtain rodis mounted upon this latch plate with its axis inclined at an angle tothe plane of the latch plate. I have found that this socket member maybe made very inexpensively as shown in the drawing. I provide achannel-shaped member, 26, which is fastened to the latch plate,forinstance, by means'of the rivets, 27, and which has the wedge-shapedsides, 36, and the bottom portion, 28, in-

clined at an angle to the plane of the latch plate. The tongue, 29, isstruck laterally from the bottom portion, 28, so as to form a bottom forthe socket member. I also provide a channel-shaped member, 30, which isslightly larger thanthe member, 26, so that the latter may nest withinit, and the member, 30, is riveted to the latch plate by the rivets, 31.The member, 30, has Wedgeshaped sides, corresponding to the sides, 86,of the smaller member, and abottom portion, 32, extending parallel tothe bottom portion, 28, of the smaller member, 26. These two members areboth stampings -which can be made in large numbers at low cost and, whenthey are assembled, one within the other, and secured to the latchplate, they form a socket member ofrectangular cross section the sidesof which are formed by the bottom portions, 28 and 32, of the members 26and 30, and the wedge-shaped sides of the member, 30. The axis of thissocket is inclined at an acute angle to the plane of the latch plate andthe bottom of the socket is formed by the tongue, 29. The mouth of thesocket is disposed adjacent an opening formed in the latch plate and thedoor panel. The curtain rod, 38, has its lower portion, 34, bent atoblique angle to its main portion and squared, as at 35, and when thissquared portion is inserted in the socket the curtain rod is carried ina firm and rigid manner by the door, while the main portion of thecurtain rod extends vertically with respect to the door.

It will, be observed from the foregoing description of the parts that Ihave provided a particularly simple and effectiveconstruction forcarrying the curtainrods in the doors. The entrance to this curtain rodsocket is through the inner side of the door so that water cannot gainaccess through the opening for the socket and the OlJjQCtlOIlS incidentto the form of curtain rod socket heretofore used are avoided.Furthermore, the socket member may be formed of very simple stampingsand attached to the latch plate by very simple operations. It will alsobe noticed that no extra operations are needed for assembling the socketmember in the door since it will be inserted in place when the latchplate is assembled in its position in the door.

I am aware that the embodiment of my invention, which I have illustratedin these drawings, may be changed considerably without departing fromthe spirit of my invention and, therefore, I am not to be restricted tothe particular construct-ion illustrated and I claim my inventionbroadly as indicated by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new and desire tosecure by Let-' tiers Patent, is

1. In an automobile door, a pair of "door side panels connected togetherat their edges and having their body portions spaced apart to form achamber between them, one of said side panels having an openingtherethrough, in combination with a latch plate carried by one'of saidpanels and disposed within said chamber, and a curtain rod socketcarried by said plate and disposed in line with the opening in said sidepanel.

2; In an automobile door, the combination with a pair of door panels, ofa latch plate secured to one of said panels, a socket member carried bysaid latch plate, inclined at an angle to the plane thereof, anddisposed between said panels, one of said panels having an openingtherethrough in line with the mouth of said socket member, and a curtainrod having its lower end inserted through said opening in the door panelinto the socket member.

3. In an automobile door, the combination with a pair of doors, of alatch plate secured to one of said panels, a socket member ofnon-circular cross section carried by said latch plate, inclined at anangle to the plane thereof, and disposed between said panels, one ofsaid panels having an opening adjacent the mouth of said socket member,and a curtain rod having its lower end of non-circular cross section andinserted through said opening into said socket member.

l. In an automobile door, the combination of a latch plate, carried bysaid door, and a pair of channel-shaped members nested one within theother to form a socket memher and secured to said latch plate.

5. In an automobile door, the combination of a latch plate carried bysaid door, a pair oi channel-shaped members having wedgeshaped sidessecured together and to the latch plate in nested relation with respectto each other with their bottom portions parallel to but spaced fromeach other to form a socket adapted to receive the end 01" a curtainrod.

6. In an automobile door,the combination of a latch plate carried bysaid door, and a pair oi channel-shaped members secured together and tothe latch plate in nested relation with respect to each other with theirbottom portions parallel to but spaced from each other to form a socketadapted to receive the end of a curtain rod, one of said members havinga tongue struck up therefrom to form the bottom of said socket.

7. In an automobile door having a hollow main body and a latch mechanismincluding a base plate secured flatly against the inner face of saidbody, together with a curtain rod socket carried by the latch mechanismand opening interiorly of the door through said base plate.

8. In an automobile door,a side panel, a latch plate carried by thepanel, and a curtain rod socket carried'by the latch having a mouthopening partly through the lock plate and partly through the panel.

9. In an automobile door, a pair of door side panels connected togetherat their edges and having their body portions spaced apart to form achamber between them, a latch plate attached to one of said panels andhaving inner and outer faces, and a latch mechanism and a curtain rodsocket mounted together on the inner face of the plate.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature.

JOSEPH LEDVVINKA.

